Two drafts of possible multi-member commission voting districts, both of which reflect a five-person style, were presented at the apportionment subcommittee of the citizens advisory group Monday.
While the apportionment subcommittee is not yet for certain a five-person format will be the final decision presented to the full Citizen Advisory Committee(CAC) by the structure subcommittee, it is suspected the “three feasible options” offered will all be variations on a five-person board of commissioners.
The final decision is to be presented for public comment this fall before appearing on a binding referendum. In the November 2010 election voters will decide if Pickens County changes from a sole commissioner to a multi-member commission.
CAC Chair Phil Anderson told apportionment members at their Monday meeting, “I think from sitting in on [the structure subcommittee] meetings…there will be three alternatives presented, all of which will be five commissioners.”
Apportionment member Steve Greenwell pointed out, however, that following the first round of public meetings slated in July, the CAC may find, “[A five-person commission] may not be what the people want.”
The structure subcommittee is working closely with members of the research team to determine which format would be best suited for Pickens County residents who expressed a strong interest in the multi-person commission format in the July 2008 primary.
The two drafts for commission voting districts are simply combinations of the 12 existing voting districts in Pickens County. Apportionment members attempted to create combinations that offer the most balanced figures in terms of population to ensure “one man, one vote,” or proportionate representation.
“Equal representation is what makes a difference,” said Jim Looney.
While committee members expressed concern the figures being used are from the outdated 2000 Census, they agreed it was the best information they had to work with at this point.
“We’ve got to do something,” one committee member said.
One district map draft is split into four commission districts. In this draft, one commissioner would be elected at large. The second draft is split into five commission districts in which all five commissioners could be elected either at-large or by commission district.
Anderson offered this “data point” from his experience as previous county manager for Dawson County, regarding at-large versus by-district voting. Anderson said Dawson operates using one part-time chair elected at large and four part-time commissioners who are also elected at large, but represent specific geographic districts.
Public hearings were held in Dawson County to determine if voters would prefer to elect commissioners by district, Anderson said, but according to him the public overwhelmingly chose to keep all commissioners elected on an at-large basis.
Anderson said the public felt this government format led commissioners to, “do what’s best for the whole county. They didn’t want battles over roads and softball fields,” he said. “The public found they can be champions for things other than geography…but there are 159 counties [in Georgia] so there are a lot of other options.”
Three members of the apportionment subcommittee will attend the structure subcommittee’s next meeting on Monday, June 22 to present the two district map drafts for further review.
For more information about moving to a multi-person commission, including past articles, please visit www.pickensprogress.com and click on the “Moving to a multi-person commission link.”
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